Fruit-jar-capping machine



t G. E. FRAZIER.

FRUIT JAR CAPPING MACHINE. APPLICATION FILED DEC- 3, 1920.

Patented Aug. 15, .1922.

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G. E. FRAZIER. FRUIT JAR CAPPING- MACHINE. APPLICATION FILED DECIS,1920- Patented Aug. 15, 1922.

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G. E. FBAZIER.

FRUII JAR CAPPING MACHINE. APPLfCATlON FILED 050. a, 1920.-

Patented Aug. 15, 1922.

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GEORGE E. 'FBAZIER, OF MUNCIE, INDIANA. ASSIGNOR OF ONE-HALF TO CLYDE C.

COOK, O13 MUNCIE, IDTIDIANA.

FRUIT-JAR-CAPPING MACHINE.

eas es.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, GEORGE E. l nemen, a citizen of the United States,residing at 'Muncie, in the county of Delaware and State of Indiana,have invented new and useful Improvements in Fruit-Jar-Capping Machines,of which the following is a specification.

In the manufacture of what is commercially known at Mason fruit jars,which are of glass with screw-threaded months on which metal caps arescrewed before they are boxed and sent to the market, the screwingon ofthe caps has been done by hand with much labor and expense. The objectof this invention is to place the caps and screw them on the jars bymechanical means, automatically.

I accomplish the object of the invention by the mechanism illustrated inthe accompanying drawings, in which Fig. 1, is a View in side elevationof my invention in operative position, part of the machine being invertical section. Fig. 2 is a detail in partial vertical section of thecap-holding mechanism. Fig. 3 shows the same parts in position fordischarging the capped jar. Fig. l is a top plan view of the machineshown in Fig. 1. Fig. 5 is a detail in partial section of the rotatinghead and its adjustment to cans of different lengths, for rotating thecans in screwing them into the caps. Fig. 6 is a side view of the head,and Fig. 7 is an end view of the machine with the carrier for supplyingcans to be capped removed.

Like characters of reference indicate like parts in the several views ofthe drawings.

The frame 8 of the machine is of anysuitable material. and construction,and to the end which will hereinafter be designated as the front end,are brackets suppporting an oblique slideway 9, upon which fruit jars tobe capped are placed. They are fed off one at a time by gravity and bymechanical means to insure their discharge one at a time. This comprisesa reciprocating arm 9, pivoted at its middle to a standard 10,

and having a depending finger at each end rocking the arm will behereinafter ole-- scribed.

Mounted in suitable ournals on the frame 8 is the main shaft 11 which isdriven by a belt 12 from any suitable source of power, not shown.Swingingly supported from shaft 11 by suitable journal-boxes, is anauxiliary frame 18,'andmounted on shaft 11 between the sides of frame13,is a roller 14, preferably covered with rubber or other Specification ofLetters Patent. l ajjejritjed Aug. 15, 1922.

Application filed December a, 1920. Serial No. 427,972. I

material to increase the'surface engagement with a fruit jar. Mounted injournals on the frame 13, is ashaft parallel with shaft 11, on which a,roller 15 similar to roller 14, is mounted] Roller 15 is also coveredthem without going clear through,'

The opposite enclof arm 17 is weighted to. normally raise the I beltaway from the jar and provide clear ance for the placing of a jar on therollers,

and that end is raised by a cam 18 while the jar is being capped; Ashaft 19 on which cam 18 is mounted is'supported in suitable journals onthe frame 8. Mounted on it is a sprocket wheel 19, which is driven by alii1k-belt 20, from a smaller sprocket wheel on a shaft 21, mounted insuitable journal boxes, below on the frame 8. The

shaft 21-carries a large sprocket wheel 22,

which is driven by a link-belt 23, from a.

smaller sprocket wheel on the main driveshaft 11. Thus the shaft 19 isdriven at a greatly reduced speed from shaft 11.

Mounted in suitable bearing-boxes on frame 8 is a shaft 24%, which isdriven by a link-belt 25 connecting sprocket wheels of the same size, onit and shaft 19. Mounted on shaft 2 1 is a cam 26 which is adapted tocontact a lever-arm 27 and move it to raise the long opposite arm duringmost of the travel of the cam 26. he long arm of lever 27 is connectedby a link-bar 28, with the under side of the frame 13, to hold thelatter in the positions shown by the full lines of the drawings while acap is being placed on a jar. The reentrant of the cam releases thelever and allows the weight of the frame 13, to swing the latter aboutshaft 11 as a fulcrum to the position shown by the dotted lines in Fig.1, to discharge the capped jar. The lever 27 is pivoted at 27 to ahanger supported by frame 8.

A standard 30 supported by frame 3, provides fulcrum-support for a lever30. A long arm of this lever is connected by linlr with the arm 9controlling the feed of jars to the machine to be capped, and this longarm of the lever is normally lowered by a spring 32, see Fig. 1.Periodical mov ment of the lever 30 in opposition to spring 392 isoccasioned by the contact with the op posite end of the lever of a cam29 carried by the shaft 19.

Caps 33, are placed by hand or by any suitable means in a vertical chute3% just large enough to allow them to move down freely by gravity. Arock-bar 35 is pivoted to a bracket from the chute, and the arm isrocked by a bar 36. The latter slides through a suitable way in standard37. The rock-bar 35 has a slotted end through which a pin passes tosecure the sliding bar to said rock-bar, the slot permitting adjustmentto prevent binding. The roclobar has a pin 1 aboveits fulcrum and a pin2, below, both of which pass through suitable holes in the side of thechute and are alternately moved into the path of the descending caps todeliver the latter one at a time into the lower end of the chute. Theslide-bar 36 is retracted by a spring 38 between standard 37 and anadjustable stop 39, on the rod. Movement is limited by a second stop 40,also adjustable to enable, by adjusting both of said stops, the movementof the slide bar 36 to be adjusted. The tension of spring 38 is overcomeby a cam all on the shaft 19.

The jar-caps are thus delivered one at a time to the lower end of thechute which is normally open on the side toward the jar, but istemporarily closed to keep the cap in position until it is clamped, by aswinging closure 12. The cap would fall on through but for stop 43. Thisstep is plate vertically slotted and secured to the frame 13 by twobolts passing through the slot. The length. of the slot allows the plateto be raised and lowered, to meet the requirements of caps for jars ofdifferent sizes, and the plate will preferably be thick enough to reachand support the neck of the jar to guide the latter into the cap.

While. a cap is being placed the closure 42 is down across the openingthrough Which the mouth of the jar will enter the cap, in order to keepthe cap from falling out or tilting in that direction. A bentwireholding-member 4rd seated in the adjacent wall of the chute helps tocenter and hold the cap which is clamped firmly against by a Wirespring-member 45 resiliently secured at one end to a pin 16 supported bythe chute and having the other end bent out into contact with areciprocating bar 47. The latter slides through the standard 37, and ispushed by a cam 13, mounted on shaft 19, against said end ofspring-member 1-5, forcing the springmember against the cap and clampingthe latter between member 45 and the holding member 44, in the mannershown in Figs. 1 and 2. A spring 46 on the bar a; between the standardand an adjustable stop d8 moves the bar away from the spring-member 45when the detent 49 in the cam reaches the red. This releases thespring-member and it assumes the position shown in F 3, therebyreleasing the capped jar, which rolls oil of the rollers 14 and 15 bygravity and out of the way of the next and cap when the frame 13 isreleased by the operation of lever 27 and cam 26. The proper move mentof the pivoted closure 12 is secured by connecting it by a link 50 withthe bar 45.

l have next to describe the mechanisinfor pressing the rotating jar intothe cap. This comprises a bar 51 having longitudinal adjustment inbrackets 52 on frame 8, a boltextension 53 screwed through an upturnedend of the bar and adapted to increase or lessen the extent of itsprojection toward jar on rollers 1a and 15, a head swivelly mounted onthe bolt, preferably on ballbearings as shown in Figs. 5 and 6, and

provided with a rubber portion 55 to con I tact the end of thefruit-jar. On the outer end of the bar 51 is a head 56, and between thehead and bracket 52 is a spring 5'1 normally moving the bar out todisengage the head 5 1 from the But this tendency of spring 5'? isresisted by a lever 58, pivoted to the frame 8 at 59, and having aroller 60 on the opposite end from that which contacts head 56. Theroller contacts the side of a cam-wheel 61, on shaft 19 to overcome thetension of spring 57, until the entrant shown by dotted lines at 62 isreached, which is at the moment that an uncapped is placed on therollers. Spring 5'? then withdraws the head 5% from contact with thecapped jar and out of the way of the incoming jar. Tt is not necessarythat the same pressure of the head against the jar be maintained at allperiods of the capping operation because the threads on cap and jar willdraw the jar when once started.

As it is necessary that the various operations above described beproperly synchronized I secure the various cams to their shafts by suchmeans, here shown as set screws, as will admit of their adjustment.

The operation of my invention is as follows. An uncapped jar is fedbygravity, as controlled by fingers on the rocking-arm 9, from theinclined table 9 upon the two rollers 14 and 15. Coincident therewith aj ar-cap in chute 34 is allowed by the withdrawal of finger 2, to dropagainst stop plate 43 into position opposite member 4A, and is clampedagainst the latter by springmember 45, the closure 4,2 then down beingswung back from the opening opposite the jar as the cap is clamped.

The jar is pressed against the rollers 14 and 15 by belt 16, therebycausing the jar to be rotated, and the rotating jar is pushed into thestationary cap by the cam 61 and lever 58 acting to move head 54;carried by bar 51, against the jar.

The capped: jar is then discharged by frame 13 swinging down about shaft11 as the result of the removal of the framesupport when lever 27 entersthe reentrant of cam 26.

While I have here shown the best embodiment of my invention now known tome, it is obvious that many changes in mechanism are possible withoutdeparting from the spirit of my invention and I therefore do not desireto be limited to the mechanism shown, but what I claim as new and wishto secure by Letters Patent is 1. In a machine for capping jars, meansfor holding a cap in a fixed and stationary position, means forsupplying a jar for each cap so held with the threaded mouth of the jaropposite the threaded mouth of the cap, rotating roller means forrotating the jar, means for forcing the jar while rotating into the cap,and means for holding the jarrotating means at a fixed distance from thecap-holding means. i

2. In a machine for capping screw-capped jars, means for holding a capin a xed stationary position, means for supplying caps seriatum to saidholding means, means for supplying a jar for each cap so held with thethreaded mouth of the jar opposite the threaded mouth of the cap,rotating roller means for rotating the ar, means for sliding the jarwhile rotating into the cap on said rotating means, and means forreleasing the capped jar.

3. In a machine for capping screw-capped jars, automatic means forplacing and holding the caps, automatic means for placing a jar,automatic means for rotating the jar, means for holding the rotatingmeans at a fixed distance from the cap-holding means,

and means for sliding the jar toward the cap on said rotating means.

4:- In-a-machine for capping'screwcapped relative thereto, into the cap,and automatic means for discharging the capped jar.

5. In a machine for capping screw-capped jars, automatic means forplacing and holding the cap comprising a chute through which the capsare moved by gravity, means for lockin a cap in fixed position, meansfor delivering the caps one at a time to the locking means, automaticmeans for placing the jars, roller -means for rotating them, means forsliding them longitudinally of the rotating means seriatum into therespective caps, means for holding the jar-rotating means at a fixeddistance from the cap-' holding means, and automatic means fordischarging the capped jarsl 6. In a machine for capping screw-cappedjars, automatic means for placing and holding the caps, automatic meansfor placing a jar and screwing it into its cap comprising a pair ofhorizontal rollers, means for depositing the jars one at a time on saidrollers, means for pressing a rotating jar into a corresponding placedcap, andautomatic means for discharging the capped ars. i

7. In a machine for capping screwcapped jars, automatic means forplacing and holding the caps, automatic means for placing a jar andscrewing it into its cap comprising a pair of horizontal rollers, meansfor depositing the jars one at a time on said rollers, means forpositively holding the jar against the rollers, means for moving therotating jar longitudinally into acap, and automatic means fordischarging the capped jars.

8. In a machine for capping screwcapped jars, automatic means forplacing and holding the caps, automatic means for placing a jar andscrewing it into its cap,

and automatic means for discharging the capped jar comprising a swingingframe on which the jar was capped, eam-means for releasing the held capand cam'means for releasing the frame whereby it will swing to anoblique position by gravity where the capped jar will roll off.

9. Ina machine for capping screw-capped jars, means for placing andholding one of the j ar-members to be assembled, means for placing theother jar-member, rotating roller means to rotate the last jar-member,and means to move the rotating jar-member comprising a head mounted onball-bearings on a reciprocating bar said head contacting the end of thejar, cam means for moving the rod in the direction of the jar to forcethe jar into the cap, and resilient means to retract the rod.

Signed at Indianapolis, Indiana, this the 80th day of November, 1920.

GEORGE E. FRAZIER.

